Few players remain from a stretch of five NFL Draft classes for New Orleans, and few of those players have made an irreplaceable impact on the team. This points to a much bigger problem for the Saints on Draft Night.
In light of recent trades and the acquisition of future NFL Draft Picks, taking a look back at former draft classes by the New Orleans Saints has been... interesting.
One interesting stat stands out above the rest. According to Rod Walker with the Times-Picayune, only seven players of the 27 selected across five draft classes from 2018-2022 still play for the Black and Gold. On top of this, most haven't panned out quite as well as expected.
27 picks over five years isn't a lot when compared to other franchises, and plenty of other teams haven't retained many players from this time period. Ultimately, it's the level of production from the remaining players that is the most concerning.
The only remaining 2018 NFL Draft Pick, guard Will Clapp, suffered a season-ending foot injury before the year started. Likewise, 2019 center Erik McCoy is out for the year after a promising start to the season. Out of everyone on this list, he's probably been the biggest difference-maker.
2020 pick Cesar Ruiz has struggled immensely at times on the offensive line, but he has found bits of success here and there as of late. Linebacker Pete Werner, taken in 2021, is still showing some of his same old struggles, and fellow draftee Landon Young is on the injured reserve.
That leaves the 2022 picks -- wideout Chris Olave and cornerback Alontae Taylor. Taylor has played a significant role in the secondary, but unfortunately, he just hasn't had a great year. Olave is in the same exact situation on the opposite side of the ball.
All in all, nothing from that period of draft picks has shaped up to be what the Saints' needed, despite the fact that they've been in rebuilding for years now. More often than not, the front office has traded away some impressive players only to receive draft picks that nobody seems to know how to use.
That's a big part of why this current rebuild seems like it will be never-ending to Saints fans: bad draft decisions have only set the franchise back, rather than helping it catch up to the rest of the league. There's little trust that the front office will make the right decision if the team does end up with the first pick in the 2026 NFL Draft. After all, Mickey Loomis seems to love finding those "diamond in the rough" type of guys and drafting them higher than other teams would; only a few of them have been worth it.
The Black and Gold really can't afford another busted draft class in 2026. Hopefully, the struggles this season have been eye-opening for the front office, and its personnel now have a better idea of how to go about building towards the future.